On this page I used my heat tool to emboss images to create a resist technique. I made this for the Try To Resist My Olympic Experience challenge that was to use emboss resist and to use colors from a different country's flag. I picked Azerbaijan whose colors are red, white, navy, and white.
I just had to scrap the only pics I had of Independence Day when I was in the States. Journaling reads: During the summer months of training in Los Angeles, we would always go to Canoga Park to celebrate the fourth of July. July 4, 1997

Stamps: Letterpress Alphabet, Brushstroke alphabet, Fun Filled
Paper: Glorious Green, glossy white
Ink: Night of Navy, Versamark, white souffle pen
Extras: clear embossing powder, decorative tape

3D Thursday

I had this purse done in spring papers last year as a prototype for Tasha's Christmas present but I never attached it permanently. Since moisture seeped behind the acetate inside and the patterned paper got stained and warped so I decided to redecorate it and seal it this time. It is a clear caboodles makeup kit that I decorated with patterned paper and a matching pocket calendar. I LOVE the color Brown. It's my favorite color so I couldn't think of a better color to use. I was going to add some more stamping on both projects but thought the flowers from the paper were enough.

Stamps: Letterpress Alphabet. (purse), Brushstroke Alphabet (calendar)
Paper: Patterned paper from Costco
Ink: Chocolate Chip.
Extras: purse and calendar, acetate, mod podge

Monochromatic Monday

Today for Monochromatic Monday I thought I would show another Christmas present I made. This one I gave to my sister-in-law Tasha. Lavinia loves to get into her shoes and purses. Now that it is complete, I wish I put some pics of Lavinia on it too. When I first thought of making it I thought I would include a pic with her and Lavinia and I just don't have once since Lavinia was a little baby. Now I'm thinking that I still could have put a picture of Lavinia at least. Well, too late now. The case itself is a see through Caboodles make up case. I used pink patterned papers from Costco and Katie& co purse and shoe stamps along with Letterpress Alphabet. I stuffed it with bath products.

Scrapbook Sunday

Here is a layout I made for a 12x12 Double page spread scrapbooking swap. I finally finished them. I did 5 of these and will get 4 other layouts back. The colors are very bright. Too bright for my camera it seems. Every pic I took is blurry and the color is extremely off. I used SU’s Stipple Rose, Best Blossoms, and Letterpress Alphabet stamp sets, and holographic EP on the images and edges of the photo corner. The first page holds a 5x7 pic and the second page, 2 4x6s.

Stamp Set Saturday

My favorite alphabet stamp set is SU Letterpress Alphabet. It's perfect for scrapbooking titles or monogram sets. For Christmas I made two name frames with this set and gave one to Philip and Dawn and the other for Diane and Judson. I forget the company that made the patterned paper. I used Letterpress Alphabet stamps and, French Script, Linen, the swirl from Fun Filled and "merry little christmas" from Cute Converse. The hardware is from the Hodgepodge Hardware. I would like to make some more with the seasons for my house and one for Lavinia's bedroom with her name on it.

Scrapbook Sunday - This month I decided to not go with a particular scrapbooking theme but to instead show some of my favorite pages from this past Virtual Scrapbook Night. The even occurs every three months on www.splitcoaststampers.com. The normal routine is that there is a preview, which is an evening of challenges (3 because each lasts 2 hrs) for those who are new so they can get a taste of the big event. Then there is a weekend when a new challenge is posted every 2 hours. It is very challenging for people like me who spend days on one page. You do not have to do each challenge but can it you want. It’s so fun to get a lot done. The October event was the sites third VSBN.
I saw a similar layout on someone’s blog (unfortunately I can’t remember which one) and modified it to fit a 12x12 page. I made this for the Italy challenge, which was to use the color of wine and some heat embossing on the page. I embossed the title and the smaller words to each side.

Journaling reads: We went to the old playground in the National Park. It was very windy but Lavinia did not want to leave the slide. She didn’t even want to walk the trails. She loved that slide. Cavendish Sept 2006

Papers: Costco generic Stamps: LetterPress Alphabet, Noteworthy Ink: Perfect Plum

I did this layout for the France challenge. which was to use brown to complete a vintage look to your layout. Also embellish well. I normally love metal and ribbons; I left it out on this layout. There was a bonus for sepia tones, which I did not do. Journaling reads: Jason, Taryn, and Lavinia spent the day at Woodleigh Replicas while visiting Grammie and Grampie MacLellan for a week. September 2006

Paper: Simply Scrappin' Vintage papers and stickers, $ store patterned paper Ink: Basic Brown for aging Accessories: Basic Grey Urban Couture alphabet stickers, vintage clip art, library pocket.

I did this layout for the Scotland challenge, which was to use plaid in your layout.
Journaling reads: When I was little both Philip and Tanya’s friends called me “Little Philip”. That always made me feel so proud. Philip was the smart one who always excelled in school. My grades were never that good. After pursuing a PhD in Economics he made a decision to start a different career path. He then went to school to become a teacher. He practice taught in my high school and I loved spending time with him.
I loved to follow Tanya around everywhere. Sometimes she would do my hair. Later she became a hairdresser and she continued to do my hair for years. She was in 4-H and I remember her being very good at cooking and crafts, which I could never do. She did introduce me to scrapbooking, which later became my obsession. Stamps: Letterpress Alphabet Paper: Real Red, Paper Pizzazz Christmas plaid paper, white cardstock Ink: Read Red, White Souffle pen

The next Virtual Scrapbook Night (should really be weekend) should be January. Close to that time we will see threads in the forums with the dates and a shopping list of what you would need on hand for each challenge in the event.

Fakey Friday

My challenge for last months VSBN was to have people make Faux-Leather for their pages. The look is created using masking tape, dye ink, and clear embossing powder. My challenge was to use this technique to create fake crocodile skin.

For the first example the Big Easy, I made lines with my masking tape and cut out circles and ovals to look like the skin of a crocodile. It took a while and since there is a 2 hr time limit, the rest of the page had to be very simple. I did not have or take any pictures while I was in Louisiana so I used my postcards from the area and one picture of Robin and me who was in Louisiana with me, even though the picture was taken in Los Angeles.

Journaling reads: In 1999 I toured Louisiana and Arkansas with David Groves and Robin Black. After 3 years on the road I'd lost so many cameras that I gave up taking pictures and bought postcards instead. These postcards are particularly special because it was my favorite place – the French Quarter. We went to Café du Monde often and get coffee and baguettes. Each time the same trumpet player was there and I thought it was so funny when I saw him on the postcard. I loved Arkansas and northern Louisiana but because we had gaps in our itinerary, I booked more shows near New Orleans so we could spend most of our time there.
We were in Lake Charles for Fat Tuesday and the celebrations were tamer than the New Orleans version but still a lot of fun. We still saw lots of parades and went dancing on Bourbon St many times. Because of one of our school programs we had the opportunity of a lifetime. The teacher previously worked for the mayor and was still involved in many charities and was able to get us in the stands where the mayor and the judges sat. It was so amazing. When she found that I was a big Harry Connick Jr. fan, she also got us in to see the Orpheus parade. I did not get a good look at Harry because he turned and kissed his wife right when he passed. I did see Sandra Bullock as she was presented with keys to the city.
I loved the cultural diversity – Creole, Acadian, Southern, and urban. It was such a great mix and the food was so delicious. Cajun food is the best. I tried many new foods that were so delicious. I tried crawdads, jambalaya, and even tried alligator. It tasted like spicy pork to me.
Hurricane Katrina struck last year in 2005 around the end of August. It was a horrible devastation to the area. New Orleans was completely under water and even areas in the northern LA were destroyed. It was such a horrific thing to happen to this great area and to the great people in it. I sometimes think of the time I spent there and wonder what happened to the great people we met and who took us into their homes. The destruction was so bad that New Orleans is still finishing rebuilding now a year later. According MardiGrasday.com many hotels are taking reservations and this year will be a big celebration of life. After going through hell and surviving, I can’t think of better people that deserve a good time.

Stamps: Letterpress Alphabet Paper: Bravo Burgundy, scrap paper under faux leather, Old Olive Ink: Old Olive, printer ink for journaling Other: metal edge tag, vintage clip art, burgundy ribbon, library pocket, key sticker from Simply Scrappin' Vintage pack

On my other sample page, I decided to use holographic EP instead of clear for a variation. Journaling is just Lavinia’s full name and Spring 2005.

Stamps: Letterpress Alphabet Paper: neon green cardstock for base, tan cardstock Ink: Bravo Burgundy, Handsome Hunter Other: masking tape, Holographic EP, heat gun, circle punch, paper fastener, silk flower

A tutorial for the faux leather technique can be found in the resources section on www.splitcoaststampers.com.

Great scrappin' weekend

The weekend went by pretty smoothly. I tried all the challenges except for one because it involved using wheels that I don't have. I got a lot done even though I was sick. I started to feel aweful on Friday and really was not in the scrapping mood. Then as the challenges were posted, they were so fun I couldn't not try. There were a lot of pages I would have done more with if it weren't for the time limit but mostly I'm happy with what I did.
This layout was done for the Antarctica challenge which was to show winter pics with sparkles. I doubled up on the bonus challenge which was to stamp on acetate using Staze On. It was supposed to be something big but I thought it would be perfect for my corner stamps. I barely use them because they are angled strangly so it can not be symetrical. Acetate and Staze on Solves that problem. I found acetate really hard to stamp on without smearing. You don't want to know how many photo corners I scrapped because they were smudged. I also don't have any clear glue so I used a mini glue dot and covered it with a rhinestone. I did use more acetate for a shaker box around the journaling but did not stamp on it.
Journaling reads:Winter is Lavinia's favorite season. She loves to play outside in the snow. She makes snow angels and tracks in the snow. If it were up to her she would spend all day outside. Unfortunately for her, I get cold very easily. Lavinia Jan 2006

Another of my favorite pages was this one. This was done for the Netherlands challenge. The challenge was to make pinwheels and use flowers (extra points for tulips) and have a hidden element on your layout. I based the page around tulip stickers but once the page devoloped, the tulips didn't quite work. I scrapped it and changed for the metal flower.
Journaling on the tag reads:
Lavinia loves to just hang in the living room with Nan. She is very helpful and brings her water but sometimes drinks it first. Nan still appreciates the help. Spring 2005
I used the Spring Flowers double sided papers and Mellow Moss and Cameo Coral Cardstock. I used Barely Banana ink for the title but is not showing so well in the picture.